Journalist Kerry McKay will be popping champagne corks today as she celebrates her first ever book deal, after winning the Mills & Boon, Kobo and WH Smith Romance Writing Life competition.
Kerry’s highly original synopsis for her romantic novel “A Country Affair” captured the hearts and the imaginations of the editorial team at Mills & Boon. Kerry’s eccentric but romantic English tale set in picturesque Dorset countryside beat 465 other hopefuls to come first in the three publishing giants’ search for a new writing talent to launch on a global scale.
A Londoner residing in Florida, Kerry wins an exclusive print deal with the iconic Mills & Boon brand, benefiting from working with some of the most revered editors in the country. Her book will also be supported on the high street by retailer WH Smith with the digital version published and promoted by Kobo who will also provide ongoing digital support for the title.
Now the hard work begins for Kerry as she turns her treatment into a full novel ready for publishing worldwide during the summer of 2016. Kerry, aged 29 comments on her achievement, “I was absolutely over the moon when I found out I’d been named the winner of Romance Writing Life. I tried not to get my hopes up throughout the process, so when I received the email telling me I’d won, I had to read it several times to believe it. I’m so excited. It really is a dream come true!
Joanne Grant, Senior Executive Editor at Mills & Boon believes that A Country Affair may well be one of Mills & Boon’s 2016 bestsellers. She says: “Kerry is an exceptional writing talent with a brilliantly creative mind. The Mills & Boon Editorial team were utterly charmed by her original concept of a traditional romance, the quirky characters and uniquely British situations they find themselves in. We can’t wait to read the final version!”
Kerry McKay’s A Country Affair was closely followed by two other outstanding works which tied for joint second position in the initiative. Twice in a Lifetime by Jayme Walter and The Me I’ll Be When I’m Thirty Three by Erin Turnball were also highly acclaimed by the judging team. Both Jayme Walter and Erin Turnball will receive a beautiful Kobo Glo HD.
